Only Learn
by Chonzu
Summary: Darkrai wanders through his city, Drimare Town, to find Cresselia hurt, lost, and heartbroken. Taking her in, he finds out that Latios lies at the heart of all her problems, and sets out to help her fix them.


For the first time in what felt like a million years, the sun was shining brilliantly. The city was still cold, but the warm air from above broke through the clouds and one walking around could smell the sweet scent of rain drying up. He loved to watch the clouds move and change shape, loved how the air felt against his cold dark skin, loved taking in every breath of air he could for within the day, or possibly the next, the sun would be gone once more for most likely the entire rest of the year. And even though it was late fall now, the sun was so much sweeter and warmer than the cold fog, rain, and darkness that he brought. With this city he built with his own hands connected to his own soul, it took on a persona like him despite how much he tried to change that. It was so dark all the time when, in fact, he loved the sun! And even when he was little with his adoptive father he would bounce around the beach with the sun shining down on his back.

Now? His dark skin burned within five minutes of being in the sun. Whenever he left his apartment on these days, he would slather sunblock all over his arms and face, leaving him with huge messy globs he did not bother to scrub in. Sometimes he even got it in his hair, such as today. He needed his arms to be completely bare, so more clothes were out of consideration, but he always had his pink umbrella to give him shade and to spin around as he walked down the streets. A walk on a day such as today was his favorite pass time. He could feel the cool mist drying up on his arms and closed his eyes as he walked into a breeze of warm air. There were no words he could muster up to explain how much he loved these days. Children played, adults took walks, dogs frolicked, the birds sang.

A smile came to his lips. He remembered building this city with his own two hands not even one hundred years ago. The ghosts had helped him, as it was originally a ghost town, and now thousands of people chose to live here. Why? He could never figure it out. Some of them required sun, like the Sunflora or Cottonees, and some of them were hot, like the Rapidash and Heatmoars he saw. Rain would have been no good for them, and yet they were there, living their lives and sometimes even helping him. Pokemon like these were what he lived for; friendliness was all he had been taught since the moment his father died and Lugia took him in.

Humming a tune he had known since before he could remember, he watched the skies as birds flew by and Tailow delivered messages. With the sky clearing up, they could fly freely through the sky, and the younger chicks would try to get as high as they could before their parents dragged them back down to the ground. One Pokemon in particular shot through the air with so much energy that he instantly pinpointed the child as Victini. His hair was in flames, he was filled with boundless energy (a concept many Legendaries had yet to understand), and zoomed around asking various Pokemon if they would battle with him. With a laugh, Darkrai rolled his eyes. That child, since being created less than a year ago, was always so out there. Literally. He was nomadic, and seemed to enjoy this city for the time being. Darkrai liked that.

Despite his friendliness, a lot of people refused to talk to him or were turned away from his presence. It could have been his chains, which jangled ominously, or the fact that his hair sometimes began to blow in a wind that was not there, or maybe it was because of his father and the reputation of the Darkrai clan. Who knows.

Many Pokemon he passed were intent on asking why the day was clear. Either Lugia was in the area to clear away the clouds and give his son a moment's peace, or his counterpart was in the city. He had never met his counterpart as he had never been to a Legendary meeting, making him feel very isolated. But that was how he liked it.

Darkrai stopped in front of a rather cheery looking family owned restaurant. He watched through the window a young Raichu high schooler rush around and pass out plates to various Pokemon and running the open kitchens was a large Munchlax lady with a smile on her face. His bird-like vision caught something in the back, a flash of a vibrant green and pink color, but it disappeared within moments. This looked like a good place for him to stop. He pulled down his umbrella, closed it, and opened the door, startled by the bell that ran through the dining room. The Raichu girl grinned and waved at him, brushing her hands on the apron she wore.

"Hello, sir. Is it just you?" The smile on her face was pure. Darkrai was so used to forced ones. "We have a nice dark booth in the back?"

He sighed. "Is that just because-"

"No, no sir. Your ears are burned, I thought you'd enjoy it as the entire room is sunny."

For a moment he was silent, tapping the tip of his umbrella against the floor. "Thank you for your consideration, but just a regular table, maybe in the center?, will do." She nodded to him and handed him a menu, guiding him along to the center of the left wing. The floor was a bright array of blue, red, and green circles on a black background, but the walls were a soft orange color and the light filtered through dark red shades. It was a nightmare in here, and he knew how those felt, but it was still comfortable.

The Raichu girl hummed and pulled out a notepad. "What do you want to drink? We have soda, berry juices, fruit juices, milk, coffee, hot chocolate, lemodade..."

"Pecha berry juice."

"Alright. I'll be back shortly."

He leaned back, crossed his arms, closed his eyes, and listened to the gentle hum of the Pokemon around him. Some little kid was upset by their food, one was throwing eggs across the booth, two of them ate in silence. A Salamance roared at a friend she had not seen in a while, and a Yamask gave a big yawn before falling asleep in the corner. This was a strange restaurant, but when Darkrai gave his order and was given it ten minutes later, he found that the restaurant had surprisingly good food.

To not waste the day away, he would eventually go outside, but again as he was eating he caught a flash of bright green and pink. He scowled in its direction. He caught a shimmer of light from outside the window. He brought his cup to his lips and sipped his pink drink, watching the light bounce around. It reminded him of his siblings, Latias and Latios, who had that ability.

Dakrai shoved himself to his feet. He dropped a few silver coins on the table and rushed outside, stopping in front of the light. His older brother came into sight, grabbed Darkrai by the front of his shirt, and threw him into the street. Before Darkrai could get up, Latios snarled at him, disappeared, and he felt the wind batter him in the face from how fast the man took off. He rubbed mud off his face and pulled himself up, staring at the stains now on his vest. Latios was here, which meant something bad was about to, or going to, happen.

He rushed inside to grab his umbrella again and disappeared without a trace into the shadows, zooming about until he was outside and could come up in another patch of shadow. His ears picked up on sobbing from a nearby alley way and so he followed it, opening his umbrella against the sun. Sitting in the shadows, he found, was a girl with burned red skin, soft blond hair, a gem on her head, and tattered clothing. Her face was covered in dirt, her hair matted in places by mud. Darkrai tried to get closer to her, sloshing through puddles of scum, but the moment she saw him she screamed at him to go away and tried to stand up. She stumbled at first, almost face planting into the cement wall, and tried to scoot forward on slippers too soggy and destroyed to be of any use.

They stared at each other. "You must be the reason the city is so beautiful today," he said, holding out the umbrella for her. Her skin was far more burned than any regular sun burn. She was like him; she could not be in the sun.

"Hmph, a Darkrai." She shoved his hand away, nearly knocking the umbrella out of his hand. "I don't need your help. Get out of here, scum."

Darkrai frowned, giving her a sympathetic look. "I know we don't have a good reputation, but you must not know me. I /am/ Darkrai."

"Oh great, that's even worse!" She held on to various soggy boxes, old and rotten crates, splintering barrels. She tried to get out of the alley, but kept slipping in the murky water that littered the ground. She cussed loudly when a long, shimmering pink fabric was torn from a ring on her middle finger. It hung behind her, as it connected to the back of her vest, and immediately became soaked with water. Darkrai held out a hand. "Don't touch me, you're filthy."

"I could say the same to you."

She scowled at him, batting his hand away again. "Get out of here. I don't need your help."

"My apartment is nearby. You're shivering. It's warm in there, I even have a bath you could take a shower in."

"Why are you so intent on helping me?"

"Because in my city, there is no crime. You must have done something to Latios, he just came from this direction. My brother has been...corrupted. Arceus has been too busy to help him, and so if her hurt you, I'm sorry."

She pointed her nose to the sky and crossed her arms, staring down at him with cold, maroon eyes. "Brother? You must be that one kid that never shows up then," she said, shoving him aside. She stomped away now, finding it easier than tried to shuffle through the water. "Your whole family is pathetic. Every last one of you-" She slipped on a puddle that seemingly came out of nowhere (though Darkrai knew it had been there) and her chin slammed against the curb.

Loud sobbing filled the air. Darkrai shut his umbrella and rushed over, helping her to her feet. She tried to pull away from him, but he pulled her into a hug. "I'm sorry about Latios," he said. "What did he do to you?" For a moment she said nothing, her head shoved into Darkrai's shoulder until she stopped sobbing. She wrapped her arms around him for only a second before shoving away and turning around.

She rubbed the tears off her face. "It's none of your business," she said through choked sobs.

"Would you like some soup? I have plenty of it at home."

The sun still shined two hours later. He had convinced her to come and take a shower, and she even spilled out that Latios, her ex boyfriend, had been stalking her for months now. When Darkrai had found her, all of her clothes had been so torn that simply cleaning them would be useless. They would have to send Mew and Giratina a message to make her a new uniform, as it seemed she was Legendary. She had to be his counterpart, though her name he did not know.

He sat in his living room with one leg crossed over the other, his head leaning back against the couch. The tiny kitchen sat behind him with two bowls of hot and steaming soup, and to his right the sliding door to the balcony was open to let in fresh air. Whatever was on the TV simply droned on with the mute button pressed. From the left of the TV was a small hallway that led to many different doors. From under one came steam for only a few minutes. Darkrai heard the water shut off and stood to take clothes to her. All he could find that would even remotely fit her was one of his old t-shirts and sweat pants, and of course some other articles of clothing she opted to keep.

Darkrai sat at one of the bar stools, stirring soup around with a spoon until it cooled. The woman he met came out of the shower with a disgruntled look on her face and took a look around the room. All of the walls were black, but the curtains, the floor boards, the door frames were all a soft shade of red, and the tiles in the kitchen were white and black checkerboard. The cushion on the extra bar stool was red, too. All of it she looked at with disgust, as if she could no believe someone liked it so dark. The only thing Darkria could say was 'if it's not dark, I burn,' and they left it at that.

"Would you like some Pecha berry juice?" Darkrai asked as he stood to walk around the counter and to the fridge. He pulled out two glasses despite her silence and poured the soft pink drink into each cup. He then set one down in front of her, urging her to drink it, but she shook her head.

"I prefer sour drinks, I'm sorry."

He shrugged, pouring the juice back into its carton, then filled it up with lemonade after rinsing it. That she took and nearly downed in one go. From that moment on, they were completely silent, and after her soup was finished she went to stand on the balcony. His apartment was at the very top of one of the five apartment skyscrapers in the city, and from his balcony the other four could be seen, as they were all positioned in a sort of circle. A garden sat in the middle, with tall lush trees, and as she looked at it she sighed, resting a head in her hand.

Darkrai came up beside her. "Would you like to go down?"

"No. I do not wish to meet Latios again."

"Then so be it. You can stay here if you want. I'm sorry it's so dark."

She sighed. "No, it's just your nature. Though I'm astounded the city is clear."

"Maybe it's because you're so radiant? No, don't look at me like that, please! You repel nightmares. You need darkness, but you can't...be darkness like I can. It's probably so beautiful outside because you're here." Darkrai leaned against the railing, taking in the wonderful smell of a fully clear day. "I think I'm going to go on a walk to the post office. I meant to check my mail earlier, but I got distracted. You may stay here if you would like."

Without another word, Darkrai grabbed his umbrella and started for the door. He locked it, making sure it was secure, and took in a deep breath of fresh air upon stepping outside. The post office was down the street, and ten minutes later he stood in front of his little box with the key, sifting through various letters, alerts, and notes about various projects the Pokemon of the city wanted to be done. He shut it and locked it, spinning around on one heel with his umbrella cradled in the crook of his arm, hardly lifting his head from looking at the big stack he had to go through. One in particular stood out, with beautiful, fancy writing like that of his father's, and when he turned it around to see the blue triangle seal on the back, his face paled.

He nearly dropped the other letters as he tried to pry the one with the blue seal open. Upon hitting a shadow, he sank into the ground, and rose at the nearest shadow as if nothing had happened. Darkrai tore it open as gently and cleanly as he could, almost unable to read it as he rushed back to the apartment. At this point, he did not bother to walk. He took off through the air, as most Ghosts could do, and phased into his apartment from a shadow he created outside with his umbrella. Cresselia jumped off the couch in surprise, moving away from Darkrai with fear in her eyes. She backed up against a wall, holding her arms close to her, but something about her calmed down when she noticed who it was.

Darkrai threw the letters down on the counter. He flopped down on the couch, crossing one leg over the other, throwing his umbrella into a bucket behind him. "Cresselia, come here. I have no idea who this addressed to, but you may notice this mark." He held up the back of the envelope, and Cresselia shook her head, fear returning to her eyes. "It doesn't say much. It just says 'you can't hide her for long. ~Latios' But...why does he keep hunting you down?"

"I don't know," she muttered, her arms trembling. "He just- I broke up with him months ago, but he won't leave me alone. I ran as far as I could from Twin City South, and I ended up getting here." Tears welled up in her eyes and she sank to the floor, holding her arms around her knees. "Please don't let him get me, he hurts me. He stalks me. One time he-" She buried her face in her hands.

"Did he...rape you?" She was silent. But ever so slightly she nodded, and Darkrai was on his feet and beside her as fast as he could go. "I'm sorry. When? Did you see anyone about it? Arceus should have done something."

She rubbed her face. It looked as if she was trying to sink down as far as she could go, even farther, but it was not working. She leaned into Darkrai's touch when he placed his hand on her shoulder. "It was weeks ago by now. I don't know. I don't want to talk about it. Please don't let him get me."

"No, no I promise. You can stay here, if you want. I will have to speak to my father about this, though. Is that alright?"

'"I don't care. Just don't let him get me."

"My brother has a habit of being able to make himself invisible, much as you are able to. I will set security up around my apartment if you wish. Come on, I have people I need to visit, let's get you to my room."

Once she was settled, Darkrai grabbed his umbrella and padded around his apartment, setting up various traps and energy bubbles that were high in nightmare energy. It was enough that no Pokemon should be able to get through. Finally he felt content enough with this that he turned to the balcony and phased through, falling until he touched lightly at the ground. It was time to visit Lugia.

* * *

**_Shinzu_**: Shoot, I wrote this thing years ago, as evident on my other account Shinzoku. To this day, people have been asking if I'm ever going to continue. Unfortunately for that old one, no. This new one? Yes. This is set in a whole new, fleshed out world that makes sense and stuff! 8D


End file.
